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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23594452">It never ends</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/veritasmahwa/pseuds/veritasmahwa'>veritasmahwa</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Berserk (Anime &amp; Manga), Claymore (Anime &amp; Manga)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Complete, Crossover, One Shot, Short One Shot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-20 05:49:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,685</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23594452</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/veritasmahwa/pseuds/veritasmahwa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Clare's journey has come to an end, but there are still yoma out there that needed to slayed. Along with Raki, she receive an unexpected help from a Black Swordsman.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Clare/Raki (Claymore)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>It never ends</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Big thanks to Silirt (from FFN) for being a grammar beta for this story, as you can guess english isn't my native language.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Their main objective was accomplished. The sword, the same height as her own is as elegant as it is big. This giant sword looks feminine like the user, Miria. Miria beat the monster with this sword called Claymore. Monster is a common word to use to describe many creatures. So they use a different one for these. They are called Yoma.<br/>But no more. When Miria slashed this weird, big, monster head, all the source of Yoma also was cut through. The organization is done for good. Now the only thing left is the Yomas who wander around in the world. That's always the job for Claymore. Now it's not so much a job as taking the trash out. The difference is they have to kill them before Yoma hurts innocent people.<br/>***<br/>"Wake up, Guts!" the genderless humanoid body under the wings of elves shouted with his tiny lungs. A grown man could hold this creature in his palm. That was proven by the silhouette under the giant tree. With his black thick coat, the man slightly moved his hand as if annoyed by flies. If he hadn't moved one could not tell that there was a man here. Under the twilight of the heavens, Guts moved his tired eyelids. It was a tough night, again. After the incident of what happened on the golden age, there was no night that was peaceful for Guts. Always a supernatural element of this world would see him as a bright lantern, something to consume. So he had to fight with sheer willpower and a bit of luck.<br/>Of course such a person wouldn't need someone or some elf to shout to him to wake up. With his experience as a mercenary, as a soldier he could sleep and get up whenever he wished. But now, it was not the tiredness that kept him from moving. It was a more basic behaviour. He simply didn't care.<br/>The elf named Puck shouted again.<br/>"Aren't you gonna help them?"<br/>Guts sighed, but he was already on his feet. There was a little bit of blood on his neck. It was fresh, so one might think he got injured there. The truth, however, was different. It was a brand on the right side of his neck near his jugular vein. It was reacting to those supernatural elements in nature, by bleeding. That pain wouldn't wake Guts up though. So he wouldn't even need to cut his sleep after another nightless day. But maybe the humanity in him forced him to move his body. So he acted with a single word to the palm size creature.<br/>"Right."<br/>***<br/>Miria and her team had the experience to track and hunt down even Awakened Beings, creatures which Claymores, such as Miria and others, usually hunt down. They were ultimately called Yoma. Awakened Beings were a type of Yoma who possessed a great power. Fortunately, there weren't many threats along the way for them. After the defeat of Priscilla there shouldn't have even been any awakened beings left. Or so they thought.<br/>Claymore as an organization had disbanded. They were free now. After all those Yoma hunting and traumatic events, they knew the value of this event more than anyone. Clare is one of them. At the start of her journey she was the weakest of the organisation. After all those journeys she met a boy named Raki. Raki was just a boy who was saved from Yoma. But the bond that rose between them was nothing like others who got rescued by Clare. Not anymore. Not after all this done.<br/>In the end they were hunting Yoma like Miria and her team. Somehow, she felt like she had to do it. She had to help Miria after all the sacrifices she made. She thought Raki would go against her. But no, Raki was willing to follow her. Just like her first meeting. That's why they left the peaceful life once again. Irine of course, told them she would wait for their return.<br/>"I expect you to return my arm," said Irene with an almost playful smile on her claymore face. Like every other claymore she had silver eyes and almost white hair, although most people claim claymores are blonde. It was a side-effect of being a half-yoma.<br/>Clare responded with a smile while Raki thought once again how beautiful this pageboy haircut woman was. His love was so strong, he searched for her seven years after their paths parted with his dear Clare.<br/>Thanks to Clare's yoma power, she could feel a yoma if it was close to her. So they came across one after a not so long journey. Although their tag team isn't the most effective one due to Raki being a normal human. He doesn't have the enhance speed, strenght and senses Clare has. Yoma could also shapeshift into a human which devour before. So in the end he had to rely on Clare.<br/>***<br/>Guts looked at the humans he just saved with a disgusted facial expression. They were actually a bunch of bandits. He would hate them even without knowing this fact, though, because they were weak. He thought about how fragile they were. He focused on this idea. He had to. He had to say this to himself. He have to blame them. Or it would be a stole on his shoulders.<br/>Right after he lifted his giant black sword to hang it on his shoulder, he felt a pinch in his neck. It was a greater pain than just now. Rapidly increasing in volume; his legs almost give up. With his one eye that wasn't damaged he looked east. How many were there? Two? Maybe three? He didn't know what they were. After hunting demons down for two years he could reconize most of them by name. But this, he could only manage to gauge their power by the volume of this pain in his neck, in his brand. So he decided to head towards them. To slay them, slay the monsters with his giant black sword which gave him the famous black swordman nickname.<br/>***<br/>Clare felt a yoma. It was so powerful, almost like an awakened being. Was there still yoma like that? Unbelieveable. Didn't matter. She had to slay them. But she also worried about Raki. Sure he had grown, become a proper man with a knowledge of how to use a sword. But he, like any other human being, couldn't even show a presence in front of an awakened being. It would be tough even for the highest caliber of claymore.<br/>Even she could take them down with experience, but not raw power alone. She remembered one of the worst days of her life again. Seven years ago she and almost all the ranked claymores went up against awakened biengs. It was a one way massacre.<br/>"Raki, why don't you rest a bit?"<br/>"Right, it's almost lunch time. I'll hunt something for you."<br/>Clare responded with a smile on her face. The training she got from Claymore was no joke. They learn how to act as well as fight. Acting has a wide range from beggar to a prostitute. She didn't mind back then but now she preferred not to use those tricks, even in dire situations. Except on things like this. She wanted to protect Raki, the man she loved.<br/>Ex-47 made sure to get ready to cook something Raki hunted. When she made sure Raki had left, she leaped to the sensation.<br/>***<br/>Biff, Eric and Hel were friends even before becoming an awakened being. They lived their lives as bandits. So it was only natural for them to go after bandits. They knew their behaviour. They knew where would they be, what they were thinking. But best of all, bandits wouldn't seek help even if they under attack- easy prey for them. Also being together gave them some sort of team work. It was better to hunt as a team than individually.<br/>Like all yoma, they also had heard of Claymore. How one of the warriors called Miria just ended it for once and for all. So they didn't have to worry about that, as someone would just tell them. But now they had to worry about Miria. They didn't do this as a job anymore. They did this for free. Which made them even more dangerous. So they decided to just run away whenever they saw a claymore blade. So far, they were doing a pretty good job either way.<br/>Clare stood her ground against them. She almost came out of nowhere. First the anxiety hit them. They had the ability to sense yoma as well. So they should have at least felt something in the last second instead of someone appearing right under their noses. All three of them.<br/>But when they looked around the worrying feeling eased a little. It was just a single person. They had some experince against from their bandit days also. So the three yoma also stood their ground against this single silver eye girl.<br/>Biff was the first one to attack. The drill-like arm of his wasn't something one could just dodge. Because of all the spiky mini-drills on it, it could be swung around like an omni-directional weapon. Well over 3 meters, the drill was slammed into the ground and the fault lines just spread like cancer on earth.<br/>It wasn't easy but she managed to dodge it better than most. Except she also had to defend herself from the above after this. Hel was a yoma, who could fly with giant wings. So thin they were almost like glass, all four of them. The way he flew wasn't like a bird but more like an insect. He could change his position in the air by like 90 degrees at a time. Clare defended herself with her sword but anyone who saw it would admit if she had been more than a second slower she could have been injured pretty badly. The impact threw her to the ground.<br/>She was still standing rather easily. She had been hit by things way above this tier. Yet as could be read from her yellow eyes, she was rather in a pinch. So she decided to attack the one on the far back. Eric was holding a some sort of saw in her hand. Or rather, as her hand. The saw itself would be as big as her height. But something on this saw makes her mad. Even to the point of her fangs becoming a little bigger due to the furious thoughts.<br/>"You like this, Claymore? I used your kind's swords for this saw. How will you like it when you get cut by your own blade?"<br/>It wouldn't be news if a claymore were to die at the hands of yoma. She had to take control over this emotion, or she could turn into a yoma and lose her mind. So she ground her teeth right before attacking. Her second of hesitation would be noticed by her enemies, but the unexpected happened. Right before Clare got overwhelmed by their teamwork a black swordsman entered into the scene. Normally there was no way a mere human would even hurt them. So even if they had noticed none of them would have thought about protecting himself.<br/>Except this human possesed a rather impressive strength as seen by the sword on his back. It wasn't a sword. It was nothing like a sword. It was more like an iron bar as big as a human with the shape of a two handed sword. The black swordsman looked at Clare with his one eye. Yoma used this opportunity to run away. Sure they could beat these two, maybe, but just like any other sane criminals their first instincts were to run away. That's how they survived so far, anyway.<br/>Guts looked at their backs. He was already drawing his sword from his back. He didn't reconize this monster type though. It had been almost two years and this was the first time a monster was running away from him instead of coming towards him, regardless of their fate, like a month to the flame. So now he needed to decide. He could pursue them or stay with this weird girl who just changed her eyes to silver instead of yellow and made her fangs disappear. His brand in the neck said she's not a monster, but obviously she wasn't human either. Curious, he decided to stay.<br/>***<br/>Raki started to worry about Clare. He knew Clare, there was no way she would be this late over something simple. Obviously she got herself into trouble. Such a reckless girl. His feet moved on their own. Like in the old days where he searched for her over seven years. It's almost like it were easier this time. Someone who didn't have any supernatural power like himself relied on the basics of a ranger. Track the road, look for a trace, read the leaves...<br/>It didn't take him long. Because there were actually a few corpses on the road. Careful like always, there was no way Clare just ran off over a simple animal or human, he was quick to realize there were two warriors. Considering the armor and weapons around them they should have been soldiers of some sort. He glanced at their wounds and muffled himself.<br/>"Yoma"<br/>If the Black Swordsman hadn't been there Clare would have been a lot further than where she was. Because she has that responsibility. She had to pursue them, the yoma, despite her own injuries. Now it was a responsibility for Guts to carry this body of weird silver clothes and almost white blonde hair. The body wouldn't be called petite but one wouldn't call it that of a warrior either, if it belonged to a human, that is. Nonetheless, the weight wouldn't matter for the Black Swordsman. Compared to the 180kg two-handed sword on his back, the unconscious body of this girl did not weigh more than a bird. Actually, the elegant sword she carried weighed more than the girl. Which was odd; if the sword were heavier the momentum when swung should have moved the user as well. Guts, who trained with a similar sword since the age of 6, knew that and trained himself to use this momentum to his advantage. The sword, no, the weapon should be the honour of the warrior who carried it. So Guts didn't mind carrying the sword either.<br/>Raki, even though he wouldn't waste even a second to get to Clare, moved slowly when he detected Yoma. The blood rushed through his veins. No matter how many times he met these vicious monsters it would be as dangerous as always. But he knew how to keep his cool as well. He locked onto them like a hawk and was ready to retreat like a rabbit. Only three of them, but no sign of a body let alone a girl. If they had already fought then Clare... He took the opposite route according to Yoma.<br/>Guts was doing a good job of treating the injuries. It reminded him of the time when he had to treat Casca. Before that nightmare night they hadn't really gotten along. But it was a valuable member of the mercenary group called Hawk. He wondered if he wouldn't get along with this girl too. She seemed stubborn considering how she wanted to fight those monsters. Because there was enough light outside he also noticed the wound. The wound that made her a Claymore. It was a straight line starting from her neck to the her groin. Such a straight line, almost unnatural. He saw more than his fair share of injuries and violence for his life. But this was still a sight hard to swallow. It wouldn't be seen in his face though. Nothing had been seen in his face lately. Just a sadistic rage for enemies and pity for anyone else. Which reminded him of the footsteps he just heard. He grabbed the sword and told the little creature beside him a short piece of his mind.<br/>"Take care of her."<br/>"And where do you think you're going?"<br/>No answer. Typical. So back to work, healing this girl. This weird dust coming from the little wings could heal pretty absurd injuries. Not like growing a limb but even then it should at least ease the pain.<br/>"What the hell are you doing!?" shout Raki with eyes furious after seeing the half naked Clare.<br/>Guts wondered if he said calm down, those ears would listen? Unlikely. Doesn't mean he wouldn't try though.<br/>Raki draw his sword and attacked. As expected. Guts had handled way harder contests. A single human wouldn't even reach him in this area. But considering the girl he just treated and how he didn't want to take responsibility, he decided to stay on the defensive until the guy got tired.<br/>Guts was impressed by the sheer intimidation of this guy. He was skillful and pretty strong considering his build. He, too, had seen his fair share of war. Not like himself though, not even close. What his opponent called a tough day would be a vacation for Guts. But both were humans, with flesh and blood. What stopped his opponent wasn't his strength or skills; it was a shout from the injured girl who just woke up.<br/>"Clare!"<br/>A quick brief would enough to calm Raki down.<br/>"Why don't you told me!? I thought we wouldn't seperated again."<br/>The voice of Raki told the girl how traumatized he was to live through that time again. She really was careless.<br/>"I'm sorry. I was too focused on the mission..." said Clare, without adding "I forgot." Instead she suppressed the words like a piece of meat and swallowed them down. After seeing it wasn't enough for Raki to excatly calm, down she also met his lips with her own. Raki enjoyed this moment yet again. Never got tired of this.<br/>"Clare?"<br/>Seeing the half-naked girl get up and prepare for a pursuit, considering she took her sword, after the yoma, Raki decided to stop her.<br/>"I have to get them before they kill yet again, another innocent."<br/>"You can't beat them in this shape."<br/>All the eyes locked on Black Swordsman after his longest sentence for today. Silvers got angry and responded.<br/>"It's my job."<br/>Stubborn for sure, like that girl who lost her memories. She might lose even more, but he hoped not and forced his thoughts to stay in the present. The sadness in his one eye without any injury appeared and disappeared so fast it might not have happened at all. Raki on the other hand felt a strange feeling in his stomach. Felt like an anger but the thought process was only focused on Clare. The word Raki looking for was jealousy but there was no way he would admit it.<br/>Guts decided to follow them. Not that they were a team now, he thought. More like the pain in his neck. Precisely the mark he had. It wasn't a long journey. Even the awkward silence in the air didn't bother anyone. Maybe it only bothered Puck.<br/>The corpses they found on the way were making their progress easier because it meant they were close and the enemy had to stop in order to attack these people. That was the only good part though. In the end they slaughtered yet more lives. The people for whom Clare was responsible without their knowledge. Clare fastened her boots while Raki said she shouldn't push herself right after healing.<br/>When they meet the three yoma, the one who charged first was Raki. Not that he could take them down, but he decided to distract them so Clare could finish them off. This guy taking the role of a bait always bothered Clare, but it was better for him to be in a more dangerous role considering he was just a human, thought Clare. There was also this Black Swordsman on their side now.<br/>Guts used the heap of raw iron in order to attack the yoma called Biff. Biff focused on Raki so the attack should have made contact, but the one who countered the slash was Eric with his saw-like arm. Clare was busy with Hel. The bait didn't do the job because yoma had something these three did not- teamwork. It might have worked against a weaker team but they used to work as a team. A team who work together can increase in power easily. They all knew that.<br/>Biff and Eric looked like they were cornered when both their back touched each other. Guts, with his experience held his ground for a moment while Raki was the one who attacked. But with a simple yet synchronized foot work the yomas swapped places. Guts got hit by Biff's attack. The Black Swordsman flew toward Clare. When both were down only Raki was left on the offence team.<br/>Raki's sword was broken while he held his ground. It was impressive he hadn't been killed in those mere seconds though. His journey with Clare wasn't for nothing. But the fruits he got by this adventure weren't enough against these monsters either. He endured one more strike while Guts and Clare got up to attack the yoma. The broken sword Raki held on to was thrown to the air while he found himself on the ground. Raki couldn't hold the air in his lungs after the hit he got. Hel with his flying ability caught the broken sword and dove into the body on the ground. It was inevitable for Raki, except to dodge or save himself from his own sword.<br/>Now that they had killed one of the problems, the yoma could focus on the stronger folks. Not only did they know about teamwork but also knew the trick of killing the most squishy party member. Guts and Clare were hit by another powerful teamwork attack. Not that they couldn't dodge but it was hard to move with sheer thoughts when someone in their team just died in front of them. Not even the Black Swordsman could use his full power. Not because of physical limitation but a change in mental state in the battle.<br/>Their own blood became a red blanket for Guts and Clare after the fight. The first one to wake up was Guts, while thanking the old man who made the armor on his body. Puck was the one who yell at him while using his weird dust to wake up Clare.<br/>"I'm glad you're okay, Guts!"<br/>Guts just nodded and glanced over at the dead body. Raki, was it? Killed by his own sword. The sword that slayed yomas for more than seven years. Nailed down to the ground looking at the sky, unconscious. The light in his eyes was long gone. Before this, he was only a village boy.<br/>If he had been stronger he wouldn't have needed the help of the Black Swordsman. Clare wouldn't have needed to protect him. In fact, he would have protected Clare. On his own. No one else.<br/>Suddenly he felt a single blood rush in his lifeless body. Was it lifeless anyway? It should be. But there was this weird feeling. It was like his own sword decided to help him. Not with iron and steel, but almost like using the particles of the yoma he slayed so far. He felt like he was burning first. Was this how they made Claymores? Raki remembered a few words from Miria, the claymore who had put an end to the organization. They simply put yoma blood to a regular human. If the human survived a painful experience they could become a Claymore. In the end, what people called yoma was just a virus that changed the properties of a human body. Silver eyed witches were just a variation of it.<br/>In the end, the virus itself wasn't the issue. The process include ripped the body in perfectly half, as happened to Clare, as to every one of the Claymores. Raki found her still beautiful after he saw the scar. It wasn't even a minor issue for him. He had been saved by her. Then he shook his childish thoughts on the journey while looking for Clare. But his emotions stayed with him. Just like Clare. So he lived for Clare. He died for Clare. And now...he was reborn for Clare.<br/>The first one to notice was Biff, but not because he had the sharpest senses. In the end, all focus was on the black and silver armor. Biff noticed because he was the closest to Raki's body. It was like that human body just appeared out of thin air. Biff wasn't sure how to react. All he knew was it had a similar air when a Claymore gave up on their human side. The organization used girls because they had better control over claymore bodies as it requires better emotion control and pain durability. So they just gave up on men. Eric and Hel were a little less patient than he, so he let them go on first, as he had the strongest physical body among three.<br/>"But, how?"<br/>Raki's body sway like a drunk person. Mumbling under his breath.<br/>"Power...I...want...strength."<br/>Biff ready himself for an attack. And that feeling turn into a feeling of danger. He had to attack before it's too late- too late for what? he asked himself. The response was a cold void. But the feeling of danger increase rapidly. Such a primitive feelings force him to charge this body.<br/>"Power...I want strength...Power...ful... Enough to stop this attack..."<br/>Biff, twisting his arm in order to use as much power as he could, drew back. It wasn't like a giant punch, it was a drilling machine. The force was enough to blow dust on the ground. But it suddenly stopped.<br/>It wasn't the blood in his veins even in this yoma state. It was fear. The raw danger overwhelmed Biff in the mere moment of his fist stopped. His arm was bleeding with little twisting muscles. His skin tissue got blown up after he forcefully stopped. Who or what in the world could do that? Biff didn't even notice he had taken a few steps back. He threw another punch, not with fear this time, but with desperation. The last thing he remembered before the life in his body faded away was his head being blown up.<br/>***<br/>Guts and Clare were on their feet again. Not that their bodies could handle that. But if they couldn't, the two yoma would devour their meat. Then they noticed something along with yoma. The wind that blew their way for a few second had a weird smell on it. It belonged to a yoma, which made all four of them glance over that way.<br/>Raki's spiky hairs turned purple and silver and it was Hel in front of him. Hel was watching this kid turning into an awakened yoma and beyond. He didn't know what to do about this overwhelming power. Was he about to witness an abysmal one? That might benefit them.<br/>Eric was yelling his lung out for the flying Hel, yet Hel was too focused on the Raki. Keeping his distance, he saw the new yoma mumble under his breath.<br/>"I want it...I want it so bad...I want it to catch it...I want it to catch it..."<br/>Something moved on Raki's arm. Hel readied his wings to dodge in case he did something unexpected. For a moment he heard a sound from Eric. It was only a moment of distraction. He cursed his trust for his teammate. The distance should have been enough to see despite his focus slightly turning to Eric. Yet the sheer speed from Raki's whip was enough to catch him up in the air.<br/>Coughing blood, he flapped his wings like a bug, trying to free himself from the whip.<br/>"Calm down!"<br/>Eric's shout hit his ears. Right, he should remain calm. He was obviously strong enough to kill Biff. He couldn't just shake this off by force. So either he would wait for Eric or attack. Hel chose to attack because if Eric didn't help him they both would be dead. He could at least try to distract this opponent in order to give Eric an opening.<br/>But the whip wasn't like a weapon but a snake. It crushed him more the more he struggled, then nailed him down to the ground. The whip suddenly moved on his skin. It happened in a moment. When whip turned into a human arm Hel was torn into pieces already.<br/>Eric looked into the abyss. Raki's eyes were white only. The blood that mixed with his human red and yoma purple gave him an intimidating look. Even Eric who was an awakened yoma had something be afraid of. No, it wasn't the blood. It was the incident that just happened. He had one-shot two of them already. No way he could win this. But maybe it was faith in justice that decided for him. He slaughtered so many, and now was killed by one of his victims. Almost poetic, it was.<br/>"I'm not going to die without a fight!"<br/>He wanted to run away, actually. But given how he overpowered Biff and caught Hel; he was quick and strong enough to get him as well. He thought he should at least take revenge for his party by dragging him to hell with himself. So he used his saw-like arm, attacking with a battle cry.<br/>"I want...I want a sword...I want a sword like the good old days..."<br/>Raki's muscles twitch. His arm was getting a little longer while flattening. It turned into a sword. It didn't look like a sword, though, more like a really big bone with bladelike edge.<br/>***<br/>The yoma blood in Clare's body warned her about something, a power to rival the Abyssal one. They were so powerful and so rare there were only three of them back in the day. Only they could beat one another. And now another one was born? This was the worse possible case for her and her friends. She couldn't let that happen.<br/>So she used the last bit of strength to get up, looking at what was in front of her. She couldn't see the other three, nor she could feel. When her vision finally stopped being blurry and cleared she saw what happened. It was Raki. Raki beat the other three enemies. But what was up with the colours?<br/>"Oh no..." said Puck, while trying to heal Guts. Clare didn't know what to do. No, she knew exactly what to do. If she hesitated to kill him now it would be like Priscilla who killed the strongest Claymore ever. But it was Raki. She couldn't kill Raki. But she had to. She had to kill this smiling boy. Wait, he was smiling? Why? To her? Oh he was smiling to Clare. Then he recognized Clare? Maybe she didn't have to kill him. Did she have to?<br/>While the time stood still for Clare, Guts moved in with his Dragonslayer.<br/>***<br/>If Clare weren't worried about Raki she would be surprised how a mere human could keep up with her. The Black Swordsman wasn't as fast nor strong as herself. But he could keep up rather easily.<br/>The dying yoma wasn't a new feeling for her. But the Abysall being, it shook the very yoma meat inside her like an earthquake. Even if she had the power...It's still Raki right? She had to be sure.<br/>Clare shook herself from her thoughts when the Black Swordsman charged to Raki. The brand of sacrifice started to ache, the pain spreading through his mortal body, which indicated how powerful this monster was. He had to stop this before it was too late. Before it ate everything in its path, like when the sun went down without any stars out.<br/>The method might change, but the emotions to drive the body would stay the same. His sheer determination swung the giant iron blade that had been made specifically for slaying dragons. It was not meant for humans to use, nor use on humans. But there weren't any dragons around, so a monster would do. Raki felt that. Just a glimpse was enough for him to understand how many lives lost their light to this darkness, this black iron.<br/>The black iron met the yoma bones. Raki's arm turned into a blade. One wouldn't call it a blade, perhaps. More like a random shape made with bones and meat. It could cut through heads, bodies and everything in the way.<br/>This sensation reminds his body of a moment- the moment when he first met a monster. It was called Zodd. Back in those days he was still a teenager, and likely less powerful. But the feeling returned to his more experienced body. Raki, on the other hand, was hungry. Oh, so hungry. He stopped mumbling and focused on the food. Yes, doesn't matter if it's a human right? Meat is meat in the end, he thought. Not like he hadn't done it before. He hunted down many animals. He ate a rabbit; a cow. What's the difference? His other arm turned into that weird whip. The length was the same as his arm but the movement was like a lively worm.<br/>When his whip moved, Guts held something with his mouth. Was it a rope? A wire? Whatever it was, it made his hand pop up. Next thing Raki knew his whip was stopped and he felt like defending himself. Defending? Yeah that was something he done plenty of times. Felt like a long time ago but now that he got injured he felt more vivdly. Right, he was a human, a human who should avoid getting hurt, not tank like he did for the last few times.<br/>Guts's attack was successful enough to hurt the monster. But something changed. His eyes- the monster's eyes weren't the distinct yellow anymore. They looked more...human?<br/>"Raki! Stop!"<br/>This voice. Clare?<br/>"What are you doing, lady?" said Puck.<br/>When Guts lifted his sword in order to attack, it was Clare who stopped him. Guts wouldn't listen to this kind of talk, but the girl was in the way.<br/>"What the hell are you doing?" asked Guts, obviously annoyed.<br/>"Look at him!"<br/>"This is not making him human."<br/>Clare hesitated for a moment. So the black swordsman understood that he was a human and might retain his human mind right now.<br/>"Please, let me talk to him."<br/>"We might never beat him if we wait any longer."<br/>But he was talking, responding. That was good. Meaning he actually was willing to give him a chance. If he truly believed there weren't any way, he wouldn't talk. Their meeting was short but seeing similar events in their life, just meeting their eyes told a lot about one personality for each of them. Moreover, he was right. Even if both attacked at the same time, this rapidly increasing power would just mop the floor with them.<br/>"He's looking at me; he recognizes me"<br/>"That doesn't make him less dangerous."<br/>"Please."<br/>Guts looked at her silver eyes, begging for a second chance. Do they deserve second chance? Well, he had a second chance once.<br/>The Black Swordsman didn't change his position. He waited so he could swing his giant iron in a heartbeat.<br/>"Fine," he uttered. It was more like a grunt than a word, but it was way better than what Clare expected.<br/>The silver eyes shone with a relief. But it was so quick it might have been an illusion. Like shadow. Clare adopted a serious face again. If she failed at this, they might lose their lives, or worse- everyone else would lose their lives. But Clare could do this. She trusted Raki and took a step.<br/>***<br/>Was it a minute? Maybe a year? But Clare stayed there, hugging the monster's body with human glares.<br/>Guts was there to slash the neck of this monster. Even the most relentless monsters fell when their heads were smashed. Which meant he had to remove it from the neck. Puck was silent, as even breathing the air was a toil for him.<br/>"Raki, you can still come back. You have to..." 'fight it' no. She couldn't use these words. If she uttered words of violence his response might be the same. The risk was so tangible, she avoided even the most obvious words.<br/>"You have to come back. You have to revert it. Retreat, Raki! Let my voice get to you. You remember it right?"<br/>The eyes changed shape and colour but the body stayed on hold. The power inside was slowed down. Not because of Clare, because it had reached the peak. If this went on even the sharpest blade might not cut it.<br/>"Raki! I love you!"<br/>She didn't want to do this. But she remembered that time when she had to leave Raki. It was an impactful moment for both. So she did the same when they take apart. She covered the yoma lips with her own.<br/>A little breeze moved through the air. Then a liquid warm through her body. It was like a marrow shower. So she opened her wet eyes. Only to see the giant iron to cut through half of the neck. Silvers turned to the one eye.<br/>"How could you!" no...<br/>"He was just standing here!" wait...<br/>"He didn't do anything!"<br/>Puck was the one who shield the glare from Guts.<br/>"Look at yourself!"<br/>"What!?" She notice the bleeding in her body.<br/>She knew, actually. She just refused to accept it for the pain. No, more so, she even refused the fact that Raki was a yoma now. So she could revert him to human again. Let alone Raki injured her.<br/>It was Raki who put a hole in Clare's torso. The Black Sowrdsman actually saved her from getting torn to pieces by killing the monster. Her legs gave out. All the blood, yoma, teressa and human blood. She refused to get to her feet. Not because of the bleeding from her torso, but because of the emotional impact, she couldn't move her legs.<br/>Guts didn't even look at Clare anymore. He just took his way out. On to the next village or something. Leaving Clare with the cut-in-half monster once called Raki.<br/>Puck sat on Clare's shoulder while Clare couldn't even think what to do with this sorrow. the little creature can feel the other emotions. So, using the little wings, he spread the dust. The dust that heal many a wound floated through to the yoma that had just been killed. In that moment Clare felt something. No, more specifically she didn't feel the yoma anymore.<br/>Was it really possible? Returning to a human from yoma? It actually wasn't, but then again, turning into a yoma was not easy. İt included a lot of pain. So if not a full fledged yoma, it might be possible? It seemed so.<br/>Clare wiped her tears while thanking the little creature with a smile brighter than sun.<br/>"Teehee, no problem!"<br/>Raki looked normal, but paler than ever. He looked a lot more like he was sleeping than just before, being dead. Clare hugged the healing body on the ground.<br/>While Guts wiped the blood from his neck, Puck commented on the pain.<br/>"Oh, seems like you don't feel the pain on your neck anymore. Whatever. I'm the one who saved him while you almost killed him! You jerk! What if you accidentally ripped his head off instead of just removing the monster blood?! If mighty me hadn't been here you two would have a lot of trouble mister! Just as excepted...Hey wait for me! HEY!"</p>
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